Comatose
by TheKeybladeForger
Summary: I've already lost my memories once, and now I find myself trapped once again. Only this time, it's within my own mind. Although it's not like this hasn't happened to me before, like when the Great One pushed me into one of the deepest darkest place of my own heart. But this time, I'm not alone. There's someone else with me in the darkness, someone that wants me to stay there...
1. Nostalgia

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

**Note: **Yes, you guessed it, I'm doing a sequel to _'Forgotten'_! You ever have one of those moments when random inspiration hits you and you just have to go with it? That's what happened to me today and I just had to get this started right away. I also have another one of this _'series' _I guess we could start calling it that's going to be from Conrad's perspective and possibly a mixture of the thoughts from some other characters showing how they dealt-or were still dealing-with Yuri's amnesia from the first story. So anyway, please enjoy the prologue introducing this new story about our beloved Yuri as he deals with some unexpected repercussions from where we left the story last time...

Prologue: Nostalgia

_(A Thousand Miles by Vanessa Carlton)_

_Making my way downtown_

_Walking fast_

_Faces pass_

_And I'm home bound_

_Staring blankly ahead_

_Just making my way_

_Making a way_

_Through the crowd_

_And I need you_

_And I miss you_

_And now I wonder..._

_If I could fall_

_Into the sky_

_Do you think time_

_Would pass me by_

_'Cause you know I'd walk_

_A thousand miles_

_If I could _

_Just see you_

_Tonight_

_It's always times like these_

_When I think of you_

_And I wonder_

_If you ever _

_Think of me_

_'Cause everything's so wrong_

_And I don't belong_

_Living in your_

_Precious memories_

_'Cause I need you_

_And I miss you_

_And now I wonder..._

_If I could fall_

_Into the sky_

_Do you think time_

_Would pass me by_

_'Cause you know I'd walk_

_A thousand miles_

_If I could _

_Just see you_

_Tonight_

_And I, I_

_Don't want to let you know_

_I, I_

_Drown in your memory_

_I, I_

_Don't want to let this go_

_I, I_

_Don't..._

_Making my way downtown_

_Walking fast_

_Faces pass_

_And I'm home bound_

_Staring blankly ahead_

_Just making my way_

_Making a way_

_Through the crowd_

_And I still need you_

_And I still miss you_

_And now I wonder..._

_If I could fall_

_Into the sky_

_Do you think time_

_Would pass us by_

_'Cause you know I'd walk_

_A thousand miles_

_If I could _

_Just see you..._

_If I could fall_

_Into the sky_

_Do you think time_

_Would pass me by_

_'Cause you know I'd walk_

_A thousand miles_

_If I could _

_Just see you_

_If I could _

_Just hold you_

_Tonight_

* * *

_Yuri Narrating:_

_I've already lost my memories once, and now I find myself trapped once again. Only this time, it's within my own mind. Although it's not like this hasn't happened to me before, like when the Great One pushed me into one of the deepest darkest place of my own heart._

_But this time, I'm not alone._

_There's someone else with me in the darkness, someone that wants me to stay there..._

_Someone, I had forgotten a long time ago…_

* * *

It's been almost a year now since the accident when I lost my memories. Or at least, I think so because it's kinda hard to tell sometimes when you are a part of two worlds where time passes at a different rate in each one. Still, you could say that I've really grown up since then in more ways than one...

This year I'm finally a senior in high-school, and of course that means Shori is already using his newly found influence-mostly thanks to Bob-to get me into what he considers an _'acceptable college'_. Preferably one that's close to home. Because ever since I came back from the Great Demon Kingdom with him once I remembered everything, Shori had shown us just how serious he was about never letting me out of his sight ever again.

That's right, Shori had finally been able to afford his own car.

And now, Shori was personally driving me to school every single day even though it was only a few blocks away. Surprisingly, even Murata was going along with all of it too. Ever since we came back Murata's been uncharacteristically quiet which for us usually meant he was hiding something. But then again, I guess for the first time in his life Murata had felt like his cleverness wasn't enough to protect me either.

He really cared a lot about me, Murata even said so to my face that he's always thought of me as family. Not that it surprised me all that much given how often he usually came over to eat with us rather than at home with his own folks. Then again, his parents were very busy people anyway from what I've seen from the last few times we met. But they were very nice people, I mean, look at how Murata turned out? They just didn't have a lot of time to spend together, that's all. And when they did, I can honestly say that the next time Murata comes over, he's glowing from the inside out like a full moon at its highest zenith.

Yeah, I may not be a genius like Murata is, but I know some smart things too believe it or not.

Still, Murata's been acting a lot more carefully around me lately. It's almost like he's afraid that I haven't completely recovered from the accident and might suddenly just forget who he is. That's why I've caught him going out of his way to reassure me whenever I start feeling like there's something I should still remember but don't.

For instance, there was this one time that a girl in my class asked me if I still had the pen she lent to me and I honestly couldn't remember if I did. It was such a small thing to worry about but I began to feel the rising panic swelling rapidly in my chest and I started asking myself the stupidest questions. Was I starting to forget the important things in my life all over again? Was I going to go back to the way I was back when I had a hard time even remembering some of the most recent things I had done like when I had left a room or where I had left my photo album that I had been sifting through just an hour before?

It wasn't until I dug out the stupid thing from the bottom of my book-bag that I had stopped acting like an idiot. I knew that wasn't going to happen, not again since I had everyone back home and in the Great Demon Kingdom to remind me of the things and people that meant the most to me. But still, I had only just come back after what happened in the tower and sometimes my old fears couldn't help but find their way back to the surface. So it was understandable that I might have still felt a little uneasy about things that I couldn't remember, even the stupid stuff.

I have gotten a lot better since then though. Just like before like the doctors told me to do, I started keeping a journal that I wrote in every night. And yes, I wrote everything in there, even about the stupid little stuff I had been freaking out about. It made me feel a lot better to have a tangible record of my life behind this time so if-heaven forbid-I _did _somehow get amnesia again that I could find myself again in those words. Because even without memories, I still had my own voice, my own beliefs, and a way that I felt about people. There was no way that someone could trick me into thinking something that wasn't true like they might have been before. I even left myself clues that I knew even someone like me could figure out if something like that did happen...

I made sure to hide my journals though since I knew that Shori or my mom might start snooping around to check in on my mental health. Of course there was no hiding anything from Murata, he saw right through everything I did so there was no point in even trying. Besides, I told him nearly as much as I wrote in my journals anyway because duh, he was kinda my best friend.

Still, there was one thing I've been hiding from him because I'm not sure yet what it means. Lately I've been having strange dreams about being in the hospital again. It's just like when I saw Julia at my bedside the last time I was there, holding my hand and the room had turned completely white just like the blank canvas that my memory had become when I forgot about her and everyone else. Only, I wasn't sure if it really was a dream or an actual memory from the hospital that I still didn't remember...

In the dream, I'm out in the hallway of the hospital when I starting hearing the soft beeping pattern of someone's heart monitor and I start searching for the source of the sound. And when I came closer and closer to where its coming from, I started to hear their heartbeat too beating in perfect tempo with my own. It was a strange feeling, but I felt drawn to that specific room where the soft thumping of their heart kept causing my own to race as if I was either scared of what I would find on the other side, or relieved.

As I reached for the door handle however, a hand gently shook my shoulder before an oddly familiar voice asked, "Yuri? Is that really you…? I can't believe you're actually here…"

Before I could turn though to see their face, a sharp jolt jostled my chest and I staggered, stunned. A second later, it happened again and suddenly my body began to convulse so badly that I fell to the floor. Finally, it happened a third time and I gasped sharply when the same person from before-though my vision was so blurred that I couldn't make out any details except for their voice-stood above me and smiled.

"Don't be scared, Yuri," they whispered gently, reaching down to cover my eyes with their hand once my body stopped thrashing, "We'll see each other again soon, just like we promised…"


	2. Heartache

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

Chapter 1: Heartache

Another huge yawn came over me while Murata and I were on our way back home from the mall-which was one of the rare times that Shori wasn't around the entire time-and had just been discussing my lack of sleep lately. Of course I had to tell him I kept waking up because of having all these weird dreams, but I _didn't_ have to tell Murata what they were about. I mean, wasn't I allowed to keep some secrets too...?

Besides, these dreams seem very personal to me and I didn't want to talk about them with anyone really. It was strange, but I felt kind of good in that place like it was somewhere familiar, at least until the point where my heart started to go nuts and I woke up with it racing wildly in my chest almost every night over the last few days. The side effects of waking up like that so often was clearly visible too and I could tell my parents were starting to worry too. And I had started going to bed earlier too to try and make up for the night before but my eyes still kept trying to drift closed as I dozed off despite how hard I was trying to stay awake.

"Another bad night huh?" Murata asked, keeping his tone light but he definitely looked concerned. "Are you sure it's just these dreams keeping you awake?"

Stifling yet another yawn, I shook my head, "N-no, I get to sleep just fine. It's when I wake up again suddenly in the middle of the night and can't fall back asleep that's the problem."

Narrowing his gaze, Murata asked me in all seriousness, "Listen, are you _sure_ you're doing ok Shibuya? I know it's already been about a year but that still doesn't change what happened and it still hurts to think about it even now. I just hope you're not dwelling on the accident again, because that might be what's causing all these bad dreams. Have you talked to your parents about-"

"There's only so much that I can do about what's bothering me when I can't figure out what it is in the first place Murata," I interrupted, touching the scar on my forehead. "This isn't about my amnesia because that's not what I've been dreaming about actually. I don't know what they mean. And what bothers me the most is that I can't seem to figure out if they're just that, dreams, or if maybe they're more of my own hidden memories from points in my life I still don't remember that clearly anymore."

"Shibuya..." Murata whispered softly, his glasses glinting as we passed through a shaft of sunlight.

Then, pausing to yawn yet again just as we reached the front door of my house, I turned to Murata and gave him what I hoped was an encouraging smile and said, "I told you before about what happened with that potion Anissina made right? Ever since I drank it, I've started to remember all sorts of random things from my past lives too just like you did when you were a kid. Only, my dreams lately are just confusing because I can't tell which ones are real and which ones I'm just imagining. But the clearest memories I have remembered clearly so far are the ones of Miss Julia since she's my most recent incarnation. At least her memories make sense to me because I actually met her before when I entered the Demon Mirror. So don't worry, I'm sure I'll be fine once figure out which category these new dreams fall under. But seriously, thanks for worrying about me Murata. And I promise, if they start to really get out of hand, you'll be one of the first to know. You usually are anyway whether I like it or not," I winked as I added that at the end.

Murata seemed to have relaxed a bit when I explained that to him and I was also relieved that he was acting like his usual self again instead of fussing over me like Shori and my mom. Speaking of which, both of us nearly jumped out of our skins when out of nowhere Shori shouted-

"Yuri! You're late. Didn't I tell you to come home early today?" then, glaring ruefully at Murata Shori remarked, "Just because you're the Great Wiseman in the other world doesn't mean you can just keep him all to yourself all day, friend-of-my-little-brother. Don't you have exams to study for too?"

I winced, _Crap, I forgot that I was going to study with him after we finished up at the mall. _

Clearing my throat, I stepped in front of Murata-creating a human wall between them before things got ugly-and explained, "It's my fault Shori, we were heading back but we started talking about a lot of stuff that's been on my mind and well...I lost track of time. We can still study a bit before I go to bed right? I mean you've already waited for me this long-g..." but before I could stop myself, another yawn interrupted me and I rubbed my eyes sleepily, swaying slightly as I became light-headed all of a sudden.

Forgetting all about his argument with Murata, Shori grabbed me by the shoulders to steady me and asked seriously, "Hey, are you feeling alright Yu-chan?"

"I'm ok, just a bit sleepy I guess," I shrugged, trying not to make a big deal of it, "So maybe you were right, I should have come home sooner. But Shori, seriously-" I added, brushing his hands away and looking my brother right in the eyes, "-I know you're just trying to help but sometimes I don't feel like I can talk to you because you _always_ overreact. That's why I wanted to hang out with just Murata for a little while today before we start studying because to be honest you've been smothering me more than usual since what happened a few months ago. But I'm over it now, so can't you give me a little space so I can breathe?"

Stunned, my brother stood there for a minute to think about what I just said before he surprised us both by replying, "You're right, I'm sorry Yuri. I guess it's hard to imagine that my little brother is going to graduate soon and I guess I'm just scared that you'll end up going back to the Great Demon Kingdom and never come back. I know that's stupid because you've already told us a million times that you're still planning on at least going to college before you devote most of the rest of your time to being the Demon King. I just don't like the idea of you growing up and going away to somewhere I can't protect you. That's all."

"I get that but-" I began when my dad opened the front door and called-

"Hey, dinner's getting cold so you better get inside," then, noticing Murata, my dad asked politely, "Oh, are you staying for dinner too?"

"Me, nah," Murata shrugged impishly, "I actually have other plans and was just finishing walking Shibuya home. I'll see you tomorrow before we head out again."

Clearly, that was news to Shori because he blinked and asked me, "Wait, you're going back _tomorrow_? You didn't tell me that."

I rolled my eyes and groaned with mock frustration, "Of course I did Shori! You were just too busy with your game last night to hear me. Besides, weren't you going with us? You said you wanted to practice what Ulrike taught you about traveling between our worlds with us to-"

"R-right," Shori laughed nervously, scratching the back of his head, "I knew that."

I laughed, trying to lighten the mood again, "It's ok, I'm just messing with you. So do you still want to go with us? I mean you have school too you know."

Frowning, Shori huffed, "Of course I'm going, I need to practice that time-space traveling technique as much as I can if I'm going to start visiting you on my own from time to time. With help of course at least while I'm starting out. So don't worry about that..." then, more seriously he said, "Anyway, lets skip the study session for tonight ok? You look really tired and that's not going to be a good thing if we're going back to the other world tomorrow. After all, I remember when you accidentally sent us to a Small Shimaron ship instead of the one we were aiming for because of having to do it right after coming back here and you were totally beat. I just don't want us to end up in the middle of nowhere if I have to pick up the slack."

Nodding, I smiled again, "Thanks Shori."

* * *

"You're late!" Wolfram grumbled almost as soon as our heads broke the water of the fountain the following day after the three of us left the house. I almost laughed out loud because he mirrored almost exactly what Shori had said just yesterday.

"Looks like we made it," Murata mused, looking around, "Good job, big-brother-of-my-friend. You get an A minus."

"Minus? Why a minus? Friend-of-my-little-brother?" Shori panted, still trying to catch his breath as he and I stepped out of the water first.

Brushing some wet hair out of his eyes, Murata replied, "Well, we _are _a bit late _and_ we almost got sent back to Japan halfway here before Shibuya and I had to lend you our power. Still, very impressive for your first try," he grinned, honestly impressed with Shori even though I doubt anyone but me would believe that, especially Shori himself.

"Shori wanted to try getting us here on his own this time," I tried to explain to Wolfram while Shori and Murata were talking, "It's not his fault so lighten up ok?"

Wolfram of course just rolled his eyes before snatching a towel from Conrad and proceeding to dry my hair personally as he said, "Well whatever the case may be, you're still late. Didn't you know that it's Gretta's birthday today? She's been waiting for you all day and its unbecoming for one of her own fathers to be late for something as important as that."

"I'm sure he already knows that Wolfram," Conrad added lightly, "But as I recall Shori did ask if he could practice coming here so can't you just be thankful they're here at all instead of...well, in certain other places?"

I blinked, "What _other_ places? Don't tell me someone's trying to get me here again without you guys knowing. I thought we explained to everyone that my memories are all back now so that this sort of thing wouldn't keep happening."

"That's not what I meant," Conrad assured me with a warm smile, even though I was hardly convinced. "It's just that we've been detecting some suspicious activity around you recently that may or may not be from some sort of magical interference. We've already consulted Ulrike about this but from what we can tell it may just be the result of the unforeseen side-effects of Anissina's potion which has already caused your light to flicker occasionally as if you were somewhere else other than your home on Earth. We were just worried that those interferences might cause you to accidentally show up in a different location than the Tomb of the Great One as usual while your thoughts were unfocused. However, it appears that we were worried for nothing because here you are."

I grinned, satisfied with that answer now and finished off where Wolfram had stopped drying my hair, "That makes sense because that has been happening a lot anyway, with the memories I mean, but I'm sure we'll be fine. Murata's usually our main navigator anyway so if something does happen I'm sure he'll-"

Suddenly, without warning, I heard a familiar voice gasp happily and shout enthusiastically, "YURI! YOU'RE HOME!"

The wind was almost knocked out of me when I felt her tiny arms wrap around my waist from the side and I dropped my towel to look at her before smiling affectionately and patting her head, "Yeah, I'm home. Happy birthday Gretta."

"Thanks!" she beamed as me with those bright brown eyes of hers, "But you're probably the best present I've gotten so far Yuri."

Groaning, I glanced at Conrad and asked sulkily, "Oh no, I didn't miss presents did I? I thought you guys were going to wait for us!"

"Relax," Wolfram said, picking up the towel and glancing at me with one of his rare gentle smiles, "We haven't opened all of them, just a few to tide her over until you arrived. Most of her presents were from the townsfolk which mostly consisted of flower crowns and other little trinkets. The rest of her presents are from us. Even her grandfather's here to open them with us."

"You mean that guy Mau right?" I asked, obviously distracted from my earlier protest about missing out on Gretta's presents and forgetting that I wasn't going to mention this when I blurted unsurely, "He's not...going to try and take her away again is he?"

Startled, Gretta let go of me and exclaimed,"Grandpa would never do that!"

"I don't know..." I began before I could stop myself since I had been worrying about this for awhile now, "...after what happened last year I'm just worried that he will start to think that I might not be fit to raise you properly since I never really fully recovered from that incident when I forgot who I was and even all of you guys. Then again, I might be worrying over nothing again," then I took her by the hand and smiled weakly, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to dampen the mood. Come on guys, lets go stuff our faces with cake and open presents!" I whooped, pulling her along behind me as we raced out of the courtyard of the tomb.

Watching as I made my escape from the awkward conversation with Wolfram soon hot on our heels, Conrad turned to Shori and Murata and asked them the same thing everybody had been asking about me recently. "Has he been doing alright back in the other world?"

Murata adjusted his glasses and replied with a sigh, "Not so much I'm afraid. Shibuya's been complaining about nightmares lately that he can't tell are real or not. Problem is that I can't help Shibuya figure them out because he refuses to tell me the details. But given how on edge we've been acting since the anniversary of the accident a few weeks ago when Shibuya called in sick because it was raining just like it did the day of the accident I can't blame him for being secretive. So I think that as much as Shibuya hates to admit it, he's not really ok at all. After all, the accident isn't something he can just forget so easily, especially since _'forgetting'_ is exactly what Shibuya is still afraid of."

* * *

The gifts everybody gave Gretta were pretty much what I had been expecting-well, with the exception of Shori's which turned out to be a very pretty dress that our mom had picked out especially for the occasion. It wasn't until later on that-to my horror-I learned that it was one of the many dresses that my mom had kept over the years from when she used to dress _me _up like that. But at least Gretta looked much cuter in it, given the fact that she actually _was_ a girl.

Seeing her in it though, I couldn't help but smile. It was a pink kimono decorated with sakura-or cherry blossoms-with a bright red bow tying the whole thing together and a matching pair of sandals which each had a cherry blossom pin between the toes. And Gretta looked adorable in it despite the fact that regrettably I had once been forced to wear that very same kimono when I was little, so I definitely decided to get revenge on Shori later for choosing _that_ of all things to give Gretta as a present for her birthday...

As for the others, Gwendal of course put his knitting skills to good work and created a decent duplication of a bear-bee plush toy that didn't look like two different animals. Not that a bear-_bee_ wasn't already a mixed species anyway, but at least it didn't look like a half-cat half-pig like one of the ones Gwendal made me.

Gunter's present kind of surprised all of us when he presented Gretta with a jewelry-box that he explained actually once belonged to Geisila when she was a little girl. It was relatively modest except for the intricate carvings of a young girl sitting in a field of flowers on the lid and was fastened around the edges with silver. But the inside was entirely laced with a pale green velvet with swirling gold patterns in the cloth...

From an early age-Gunter explained-Geisila had always possessed a healers touch and so instead of filling it with jewelry or other trinkets as it had been intended for, she used to stash different herbs in this bx and collect a variety of pressed flowers. The box even still smelled like dried plants that reminded us of one of Geisila's famous home-made teas that she invented herself that reduces stress and opens your lungs more to allow clean air to pass more easily. Just giving the box a whiff had a similar effect on us too and Gretta gave Gunter a huge hug after opening it, happy to have something that meant a lot to one of her favorite mentors aside from Lady Celli and Anissina.

Wolfram's present was more or less expected because he gave her a painting of her that he had done himself. Surprisingly though, it wasn't half bad compared to most of his other work. But maybe that's because this one was only a background with me, Gretta, and himself with our backs turned holding hands as we watched the sunset in the wheat-fields of what I assumed was a rendition of Zolasha, Gretta's homeland.

So coming from Wolfram, I personally thought that this was a very thoughtful gift.

Next up was Conrad's gift which turned out to be a wooden carving similar to the one he made for Mothers Day last year. It was a carving of a sleeping lion with its paws folded under that long mane of fur and one eye peering up at us which I thought was pretty clever. Gretta thought it was funny too and was excited to see that it almost looked alive and was looking up at whomever had disturbed its nap.

Then finally, Gretta's grandfather Mau presented his gift which to our amazement was a first edition copy of a children's story book that appearently had been salvaged from their homeland shortly after it fell to ruin. Colorful pictures splashed across its pages and they were filled with traditional Zolasha fairy tales and lullabies. And when Gretta happened upon the page with her mother's lullaby, tears filled her eyes and for a moment, I was worried that she might start crying. But instead, Gretta smiled brightly and kissed her grandfather's cheek before reverently placing the book among her other gifts, including Murata's which I forgot what it had been.

And then, it was my turn...

"So what did you get for her Your Majesty?" Mau asked me politely, glancing around for another box among the disregarded wrappings, "Or was it too large to bring inside?" he joked lightly although I could tell he felt kind of nervous that he might have inadvertently insulted me.

Smiling tiredly I replied, "No, its right here..."

Looking around, Mau blinked as the others followed his searching gaze as it came to rest on me, "Where?"

Everyone turned to watch as I pulled a small velvet bag from my pocket and knelt down to look Gretta in the eyes as I told her, "Listen Gretta, I know that lately I haven't been around as much as I actually, its been that way for awhile now but still, I want you to know just how much you mean to me-" then I closed my eyes, flinching slightly when my head began to throb painfully out of nowhere, but regardless of the sudden headache, I continued, "-I'm not very good at knowing what girls like but I thought that having this might remind you of me whenever you get lonely. With this, you'll always have a piece of me with you."

Then I untied the ribbon and smiled as she gasped in awe when I pulled out the small object and laid it in the palm of my hand for her and Gretta beamed as she took it, "It's a charm bracelet!"

I nodded, feeling myself blush bashfully, "Yeah, I wasn't really sure what charms to buy you so there aren't that many on it yet. However, this is a tradition that I was hoping to start with you so that no matter how old you get, you'll always find a way to remember me even when I'm away. That's why from now on, I promise that every year I'm going to buy you a new charm. And each charm...will be like giving you another piece of my heart that will always stay with you, no matter what happens."

Something about how I finished must have sounded wrong because Gretta looked at me strangely and asked, "Hey Yuri? Are you ok?"

"Huh? I'm fine," I answered unconvincingly, opening my eyes and standing up, "Don't worry about me."

"But Yuri, you look really pale..." Gretta protested, tugging at my sleeve.

"Should I call for Geisila?" Conrad asked as he strode up behind me and gently guided me to a chair when I began to tilt slightly to the side after I stood up, feeling dizzy.

Frowning, I snapped, "Look, I'm fine ok. Its just a headache."

"Your Highness, perhaps you shouldn't take it so lightly," Mau reasoned with me seriously, "I heard about your accident from a year ago and its not uncommon for there to be unforeseen complications later on due to previous head trauma long after the wounds themselves have healed. I should know, I still occasionally get migraines myself due to an old injury from the war that wiped out Zolasha even today. So please don't neglect, a chance to make certain that a headache is all that it is. Because if something is wrong, you might be able to prevent it from developing into something worse long term like mine did."

Knowing he was right, I sighed heavily and apologized to Conrad first for snapping at him. "I'm sorry Conrad, I didn't mean to snap at you."

Patting my shoulder, Conrad smiled tenderly and assured me, "I know."

And as always, I knew that he understood. Conrad was probably even better than Murata when it came to knowing when something was really bothering me more than I was letting on. Of course, Murata had already told them that something was up anyway so he knew that I haven't been sleeping well lately ever since the aniversary of my accident.

But, there was more to it than that, we just didn't know it yet.

The throbbing in my head and the ache in my heart had nothing to do with the accident. At least, not _this_ accident. There was something that happened a long time ago that was drawing me back in that I had forgotten a long time ago. And something was pulling hard at my mind-which was obviously still scarred from what happened to me-into a world that I had only visited once before...

My own heart.


	3. Manifest

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

**Note: **Hey guys! Sorry its been so long, I just had my spring break so I was visiting family all week and also I've been working on fixing and improving the chapters one of my other stories called _'Dawn's Light & Moon's Glow' _but so far I've only fixed 7 out of 31 chapters of book one. UGH! Anyway, I'm also working on a new video for this story _'Comatose' _which I'm hoping to finish this week but if not, well, I'll try to keep you guys informed about it. Mostly I'm just trying to pick a good song for the video and I already have a pretty good video visually but it needs just the right song to fit the mood. I tried 'Listen to the Rain' by Evanesence but it didn't seem to fit what I was trying to convay. However, I've decided that I'll post the beta version of that version on my Youtube account and wait to hear back from you if I should continue making a video with that song. So with that in mind, don't forget to review and let me know what you think about both this chapter and the video! Enjoy!

**P.S. **I hope this isn't spoiling anything but when you see the part that says _'Yui' _it's not a typo, its part of the story that I'm trying to ease into in these next few chapters. Also, if anyone has any suggestions or comments on what I have so far, please share, because I really hope this is doing as well as _'Forgotten'_ I just can't tell yet because I haven't written that many chapters yet. Oh, and the insert song _'Mad World'_ hopefully isn't _too_ depressing for you guys, I was just hoping to convay how lost Yuri is feeling right now and how he's worried that he's unconcsiously trying to escape reality instead of facing his lingering fears about what happened a year ago.

Chapter 2: Manifest

_(Mad World by Gary Jules)_

_All around me are familiar faces_  
_Worn out places, worn out faces_  
_Bright and early for their daily races_  
_Going nowhere, going nowhere_  
_Their tears are filling up their glasses_  
_No expression, no expression_  
_Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow_  
_No tomorrow, no tomorrow_

_And I find it kinda funny_  
_I find it kinda sad_  
_The dreams in which I'm dying_  
_Are the best I've ever had_  
_I find it hard to tell you_  
_I find it hard to take_  
_When people run in circles_  
_It's a very, very mad world mad world_

_Children waiting for the day they feel good_  
_Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday_  
_Made to feel the way that every child should_  
_Sit and listen, sit and listen_  
_Went to school and I was very nervous_  
_No one knew me, no one knew me_  
_Hello teacher tell me what's my lesson_  
_Look right through me, look right through me_

_And I find it kinda funny_  
_I find it kinda sad_  
_The dreams in which I'm dying_  
_Are the best I've ever had_  
_I find it hard to tell you_  
_I find it hard to take_  
_When people run in circles_  
_It's a very, very mad world_  
_Mad world_  
_Enlarge your world_  
_Mad world_

* * *

That night, after taking the medicine Geisila had given me for my headache, I went to bed early and had the dream again. I was in that same hallway as before, listening to the same sound of someones heartbeat pulsing steadily to the rhythmic beep of the heart-monitor. Its strange how just by hearing a heartbeat it can start to make your own seem to throb along with it too, because that's exactly what mine was doing as I made my way to the door.

Only this time-when I slowly closed my hand around the door handle-a pale hand suddenly wrapped around my wrist before I could even start to turn the knob. Immediately after, I felt my heart flutter like a dying bird as those cold fingers held me firmly with a vice-like grip that kept me frozen in place. It was like being touched by death itself, and I leapt back with a startled cry and tore myself out of their grasp. But when I whirled around to see who had grabbed me, I saw no one, even though my heart was still racing wildly in my chest.

This wasn't like before when a gentle hand had taken me by my shoulder. Whoever-or whatever-had taken a hold of me this time was something very dark. I had never felt that scared before in my entire life, even when faced with the Originators who were themselves the embodiment of evil. And that meant that there were more to these dreams then I was willing to admit...

Something was going on in my dreams that I couldn't even begin to grasp.

Sometimes I would dream about the day of the accident, and other times I dreamt of being in this hospital where I was always drawn to the same room. So then...did someone _want_ me to find out was was in that room. Or were they the ones trying to keep me out of it? More importantly, was there really any deeper meaning in these visions at all? Or were simply some of my old fears just manifesting themselves in these dreams?

Either way, as I wandered away from the room I felt myself slipping into a deeper sleep that even the dream couldn't reach as it and the hallway faded into darkness. But at the very edge of the darkness, I could have sworn I saw someone running after me before all too abruptly, I was flung back to reality when I woke up with a start. Still, I was beginning to wonder which parts of my dreams _were _a part of reality.

Because when I woke up again early the next morning...there were red marks on my wrist where that cold hand had touched me in my dream. It still stung too, which only proved to me that at least this part was real...

Or was it?

* * *

In the end, I didn't show anyone the mark.

And by the time everyone was up for breakfast, it was gone anyway.

Besides, I had already worried them because of my headache the day before so I decided to not talk about it. I know I promised Murata that I would tell him if things got too out of hand but I didn't feel like it had gotten to that point yet. Plus I decided that if I had the dream again-which I was sure I would-that I would try to find out the room number on the door so that I could see if there was one like it back on Earth. Because maybe if there was, I could resolve whatever was making me have this same dream over and over again and then they would finally stop and I could move on with my life...

It would also prove to me that I wasn't imagining it either.

Thankfully, my headache was completely cured thanks to Geisila's medicine and I felt much better. And even though I had had the dream again last night, for once I managed to fall back asleep almost immediately afterwords so I didn't feel as drowsy as before. To be honest, it was probably the first full night of sleep I had in weeks so I was in a noticeably better mood.

"Hey, I'm really sorry about yesterday Gretta," I apologized over breakfast, giving her a reassuring smile. "I'm all better though so if you'd like to we can spend at least a little while together before I start on my paperwork today. Is that ok with you Gwendal?"

Gwendal deliberately took a very slow drink of tea while he considered his answer-something I noticed that Gwendal does a lot when thinking over something important-then he finally replied, "Well I suppose you have been rather diligent lately as far as keeping up with more of your work between visits so I personally don't see a problem with that. Just don't delay too long otherwise it will start building up again."

I grinned, "Thanks Gwendal."

"You do seem a lot better today Your Highness-" Conrad noted with a sly wink, "-I take it you slept well last night?"

_Nothing ever escapes Conrad does it? _I laughed to myself before answering, "Yeah, Geisila's medicine really helped out a lot. I might even take some back home with me since Aspirin doesn't do me much good when I usually get just sucks that I had to get one on Gretta's birthday."

"So you _have_ had these headaches before," Murata mused in a more as-a-matter-of-factually tone of voice as he finished the rest of his food, "When did they start? Is it when you started having those strange dreams?"

"Dreams?" Wolfram blinked, dropping his spork and leaning close as he asked me earnestly, "Is _that_ why you were tossing in your sleep last night Yuri? You've been having nightmares again?"

"I guess so but seriously guys, can we just drop it? I already spoiled the mood yesterday and I don't want to repeat the same thing today. Everyone has nightmares, especially if they've been through what I have. I'll get over it eventually, I promise. Its just...when I was reminded of that day the memory of it was still too fresh since it only happened a year ago and I didn't handle it as well as I'd hoped. So yeah, I'll admit it, that's when they started. Happy now?" I grumbled at Murata and Wolfram despite myself.

Murata laughed lightly before standing up and saying, "Actually, yeah. Because you finally admitted it. I had a feeling something was up but you know me, I like to hear it straight from the source. But if you really don't want to talk about it then I don't see how forcing you to is going to solve anything. Right Lord Von Voltaire?"

Gwendal nodded, understanding exactly what Murata was talking about before he turned to me and said, "I understand how there are some problems that we must face alone if we are to properly heal. The rest of us can only do what we can to help you however we can, but Yuri-" he said in all seriousness, "-you know that we only worry about you because we care. So don't hesitate to come to us with any problems because that is what we are here for. To serve you as our King and strive for your happiness for your own sake as well as for the people who look up to you. We cannot expect you not to still have some lingering doubts and concerns, but your pain is also our pain as well as the pain of your subjects that love you. That is why you must do all you can to overcome your grief in whatever form it may be haunting you in..."

* * *

Once Gretta and I were finally outside alone after my lecture from Gwendal and the others, I tried my best to put aside my own problems to make the most of my time for her. After all, isn't that what a parent is supposed to do? Besides, I owed it to Gretta to spend this one on one time with her since I wasn't able to on her birthday. Also-if nothing else-besides Conrad she was the one I felt the most comfortable with right now...

She was worried too like everyone else but I guess that was all the more reason for her to act more cheerful and happy around me. I needed that, just like Gretta needed me to be there as a father figure like Wolfram was for her while I was away. And being with her, playing, forgetting for a moment about myself while we were caught up in the moment of being part of a family was very theraputic if you ask me.

Because lately, the normalacy I had once been fighting so hard to get back in my life felt like it was crumbling all over again every time I thought about my accident. I lost everything, only to have what I got back feel like shards of broken glass stabbing the inside of my heart instead of the precious pieces of my life that I was still trying to put back together exactly the way they used to be...

And every time something shifted or rattled me-like a worried glance or the glint of pity behind the eyes of everyone looking at my scar at school or in the castle-it cut into me deeper and deeper until I was sure I might break again. No one _really_ understood how I felt about what I went through or how it changed me forever from the carefree person I used to be. Sometimes I still felt like I wasn't really me anymore, but a ghost of the person I had become without any memories who I was that was now still looking back at me in the mirror.

My scar-while to me had brought me closer to Conrad since he had given me my name-was part of the past I could never erase even if I ever did put the fragments of my life back together one day. Everything changes, and nothing changes back. We have to accept change even if its scary, I know that. But sometimes I had to ask myself seriously, were the changes in my life right now really for the best? Was I genuinely moving on with my life or were these dreams proof that I was starting to run away from reality back to the past that I felt comfortable with?

"Thanks again for the bracelet!" Gretta smiled at me sweetly while she kicked her feet in the fountain, "I'll wear it every day."

I smiled back, "Next time I go to Earth, you should come with me. I've been meaning to ask everybody if its ok ever since my mom heard about you. She's dying to meet you and go shopping like she used to with me and..."

_Yui!_

_Huh? _I blinked, standing up and glancing around, _What was that?_

"Yuri? What's the matter?" Gretta asked, taking my hand and giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Did you hear something?" I asked without looking at her.

Gretta shook her head, "No, I didn't hear anything."

Somewhat relieved, I sighed, "It must have been my imagination. Anyway, I guess I better get to work or Gwendal will get mad at me. So see you at lunch then?"

I was surprised when Gretta didn't answer right away and instead wrapped her tiny arms around my waist and said something remarkably mature for her age when she said, "Yuri, I know you're still scared about what happened and it hurts real bad to think about, but remember what you said before? Its the people you make your memories with that make you who you truly are on the inside. And just like Conrad helped make you the person you are when he helped your mother name you, you did the same thing for me Yuri when I met you. I was all alone and didn't trust anyone. But you changed me so I could forget all about my bad feelings and my sad memories and replace them with happier ones! So I want to help you forget about your bad feelings too even though that won't make them go away. Hurt doesn't just go away but it can be shared with the people you love so that you don't have to carry it all alone in your heart and it can be replaced with something much better. That's why I want to see you smiling because then I know that some of the bad feelings have gone away to make room for something that makes you feel happy again. And Yuri?"

"Hmm? What is it?" I asked, holding her shoulders while she hugged me and listening quietly to what she was telling me.

"I'll always love you, even if you forgot all about me. But you won't, because all of us are a part of you too and we'll always be there in your heart too. Because just like hurt, there are some feelings that you can't forget," Gretta looked up at me with her brightest brown eyes and beamed, "And I think that love is the strongest feeling of all, even stronger then being hurt."

Kneeling down, I met her hopeful gaze and didn't even notice the tears rolling down my cheeks. Or the fact that Conrad had just walked around the corner with Shori when I pulled Gretta into my arms and said tenderly, "Thank you so much Gretta, that was exactly what I needed to hear. Thank you so much..."

"I love you Yuri," Gretta whispered in my ear.

I smiled, "I love you too Gretta."


	4. Sign

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

Chapter 3: Sign

_(Lady in Black by Gregorian)_

_She came to me one morning _

_One lonely Sunday morning _

_Her long hair flowing _

_In the midwinter wind _

_I know not how she found me _

_For in darkness I was walking _

_And destruction lay around me _

_From a fight I could not win _

_Ah ah ah ... _

_She asked me name my foe then _

_I said the need within some men _

_To fight and kill their brothers _

_Without thought of love or god _

_And I begged her give me horses _

_To trample down my enemies _

_So eager was my passion _

_To devour this waste of life _

_Ah ah ah ... _

_But she wouldn't think of battle that _

_Reduces men to animals _

_So easy to begin _

_And yet impossible to end _

_For she's the mother of our men _

_Who counseled me so wisely then _

_I feared to walk alone again _

_And asked if she would stay _

_Ah ah ah ... _

_Oh lady lend your hand outright _

_And let me rest here at your side _

_Have faith and trust _

_In peace she said _

_And filled my heart with life _

_There is no strength in numbers _

_Have no such misconception _

_But when you need me _

_Be assured I won't be far away _

_Ah ah ah ... _

_Thus having spoke she turned away _

_And though I found no words to say _

_I stood and watched until I saw _

_Her black coat disappear _

_My labor is no easier _

_But now I know I'm not alone _

_I find new heart each time _

_I think upon that windy day _

_And if one day she comes to you _

_Drink deeply from her words so wise _

_Take courage from her _

_As your prize _

_And say hello from me _

_Ah ah ah ..._

* * *

Gretta's encouragement turned out to be a huge turning point for me in regards to letting go of some of my problems. Everyone else seemed to notice it over the next couple of weeks too; because for one thing-for no real reason that I could come up with anyway-the dreams suddenly just stopped. I thought I was going to have that dream about the hallway again that night after my conversation with Gretta and even braced myself for it but I didn't have _any_ dreams at all that night.

Not that I really _wanted _to have them again, but now that I was curious enough to really start to investigate the dreams it was almost as though whatever was causing them had slipped just out of my reach before I could find out anything important. Or maybe something-or someone-was biding their time...waiting for me to be the one to discover its secret on my own. And again, it made me seriously wonder if there was more too my dream just like Murata told me a million times before.

Now that I was acting like my old self again everybody else started to relax around me a lot more and even went the extra mile not to mention anything about my earlier behavior or my health. Well, they were still talking about my health but at least they weren't acting as paranoid anymore _in front_ of me so I didn't mind. They're allowed to worry about me, you know, since I'm kinda their ruler after all.

Eventually they did have Geisila give me a long and thorough check up once she had enough time to spare to make sure that Gretta's grandfather wasn't right about there being more serious reasons behind my headaches though. And much to our relief, her physical examination clearly showed us that there weren't any serious problems with my brain so finally Geisila deduced once and for all that it was actually my lack of sleep that was causing them...

"Sleep is more important than most people realize," Geisila explained calmly after she finished the last of her tests on me. "Because even by just losing a certain amount of sleep your body can shut down and that can have serious repercussions on your health. But your body usually shows early signs that you're not getting the proper amount of rest by the usual sense of fatigue, headaches, or a number of other more severe side-effects such as hallucinations. Although sometimes it can be difficult to recognize the signs of sleep deprivation and address them accordingly because there are so many different symptoms you can experience. That's why now that we know the cause of your headaches I highly recommend that over the next couple of weeks you need to try and catch up on your sleep before resuming too much of your usual work Your Highness. And if you have any more of those bad dreams, please come straight to me and I can give you more of that medicine which will help you get back to sleep. Can you do that for me?"

I nodded, "Yeah, I can do that."

"Good," she nodded, "Oh, and one more thing..."

I blinked, "Hmm?"

"It's nothing really but I was wondering if you would be so kind as to ask my father if he could come see me in my office later. I've tried asking him myself but you know how he gets," Geisila sighed with an amused smile tugging at the edge of her lips, "I have something I've been meaning to give him since Gretta's birthday..."

"Uh huh," I nodded somewhat absentmindedly, distracted when I noticed Conrad walk past the window of her office.

Chortling softly, Geisila must have realized that I had zoned out because she stood back up from her chair and smiled, "You're probably still tired so I'll let you go now so I can give them my full report on the examination went. I'll ask one of the maids to call for my father instead."

Startled as if I had only just realized she was still talking to me, I stammered, "W-what? No! I can totally ask him to come by later. Sorry, I just kinda dozed off a bit at the end that's all. I mean, I haven't had any of those dreams for a while now but for some reason I'm still tired all the time. So maybe I'm still waking up in the middle of the night but I just don't remember _because_ I'm so tired. But I'll start on the medicine you gave me tonight and hopefully that should help me sleep better so thanks again Geisila."

"Any time Your Majesty," Geisila winked, guiding me to the doorway, "I'll see you later."

"Yeah," I smiled back before she closed the door behind me and I stood there alone in the hall...

And that was the last day of calm before the true nightmare began.

* * *

"Hey Conrad! Wait up!" I waved over at Conrad and then I noticed that Shori was with him too, and to my surprise it also looked like the two of them were busy sparring because Shori was holding a sword in his hands and seemed to be a little out of breath by the time I strolled up. "Whoa, wait, since when have you been into kendo Shori?"

"Well," Shori shrugged somewhat sheepishly, "You once pointed out before I was kidnapped by Janis that I don't know all that much about this world and how different it is from the way we live back on Earth. So I thought that since I have a pretty good handle on using my powers now, I should learn the basics of swordsmanship so that I'll be able to use a sword at least effectively enough to defend myself or protect you if my magic doesn't work. Isn't Conrad teaching you this stuff too for the same reasons?"

I nodded, smiling warmly at Conrad, "Yup, and I couldn't ask for a better teacher either. Still, you're planning on becoming the Demon King of Earth, so why do you need to know-" then it dawned on me, "Oh right, you said you were planning on visiting me a lot more once I start staying here longer after I get into college somewhere right? I guess that makes sense. Let's just hope neither of us ever has to actually use a sword against other people."

Conrad laughed, "Yes, because that's supposed to be my job. And what would I do with myself if the Demon King no longer needed my protection? I'd be put out of work."

I rolled my eyes at him, "Very funny Conrad."

Then, to myself I added, _But __I'll always need you Conrad, because sometimes you're the only one who really keeps me grounded. No matter what I've gone through, I always know that as long as you're here at my side I'll be ok. And now I'm __really starting to understand the relationship that you must have had with Miss Julia too now that I remember what it was like to _be_ her. It's still a bit weird, the thought of being a girl, but maybe that's why my mom used to dress me up like one, becaus__e she could sense that I used to be a girl before I was born as her son. How weird is that?_

"By the way-" I asked them to bring myself back to the present, "-do you either of you know where Gunter is? Geisila asked me if I would ask him to go to her office since he has kinda been avoiding her lately. So is something going on with them or what?"

Like always, Conrad seemed to know the answer almost right away because he replied promptly and told me, "There have just been a lot of reminders lately back at their old family home of how she became his daughter while its being renovated so they've been going through a lot of their old belongings which has been stirring up a lot of memories for Gunter that aren't exactly the most pleasant. In fact, that's how he found the box that Gretta was given for her birthday while sorting through the treasury at his own castle."

"Really? I didn't know that," I blinked, "Gunter never did tell me how he ended up adopting Geisila so I've always wondered about t-that..." I stifled a yawn, which resulted in a concerned glance from both Conrad and my brother so before the situation escalated, I said, "...well I'm beat so I'm heading off to bed early so I'll see you guys later. Oh, and if you see Gunter could you give him my message from Geisila?"

"I'll do it," Shori offered gallantly, "I've been meaning to see him anyway to see how your studies here are doing too. Because I realized that you have nearly twice as much to learn and maybe that's why you didn't do so well on your history test a few months ago. I also read the teachers note and it said that you've been mixing up fact and fiction but I quickly realized that you were answering the history about the wrong _world, _not a country."

Upon hearing that, I winced, "You saw that? Dang it, I thought I hid it so well..."

Walking over to me, Shori playfully ruffled my hair and grinned, "Can't hide anything from me little brother. All I want is for you to succeed and live a meaningful life, not that you haven't already, but don't forget that just because you have a place in two worlds doesn't mean you can afford to neglect either one since you've chosen to keep them both as a part of your life-"gently, he stroked the scar on my forehead with his thumb-which made me shiver as it passed the sensitive skin-and said more gently, "But the most important world that you are a part of is mine, our family in Japan, and here in the Great Demon Kingdom. And we'll always be here, no matter what."

Laughing softly, I shook my head and replied with a smile, "I know."

* * *

After I left Shori and Conrad so they could finish their lesson, I started to feel really strange. Not physically though, but you know how you can sometimes feel like someone is watching you? That's how I felt. Although at first I figured it was just Yosak or something doing his usual job of keeping an extra eye on me so I shrugged off my growing unease and kept walking.

It wasn't until I reached the hallway leading to my room that I really started to feel like I was being watched. I was walking past one of the many windows lining the wall when my reflection didn't follow me, and instead stood there idly stared after me as I continued down the hall completely unaware of it at the time. And for a split second the image reflected in the glass blurred and there was a girl there, with skin as pale as ivory and cold as moonlight that just stood there before she vanished a moment later without a trace...

Of course, I hadn't seen her but I must have felt her presence because a felt a chill ripple up my spine and I hugged myself, suddenly feeling cold.

_Is there a draft somewhere? _I wondered absentmindedly before I slipped into my room and climbed into bed. And as I lay there drifting off to sleep, I had no idea that very soon I would learn an unexpected truth about what really happened the day of my accident...

The truth that the accident, wasn't really an accident.

* * *

"Geisila, I haven't been avoiding you," Gunter gaped after Geisila confessed how she had been feeling while he was returning to his room for the night. "Why in the world would you think that?"

Geisila shook her head, "I don't know...that's just the impression I got because every time I approached you it seemed like you were off in your own world so I wondered if perhaps I had done something to upset you. Or, were you still worried about giving Gretta my old jewelry box?" she chuckled lightly as understanding filled her eyes and Geisila mused, "_That_ must be it, you thought I was upset that you gave it away so you were making excuses to leave before we could really talk. Am I right about that father?"

Gunter smiled softly and answered, "Perhaps I was a little concerned at first but that's not the reason I've been so busy. It's actually about His Majesty."

"King Yuri?" Geisila blinked, "But I gave him a clean bill of health so there shouldn't be a problem. All he really needs is a decent amount of sleep. I can't do much else for him until Yuri has enough energy to seriously think about what's bothering him. Because I for one agree with His Eminence, his dreams mean something..."

Gunter sighed and paused to look up at the stars while they were walking before he said simply, "I know that you confirmed that the headaches aren't anything serious but I still can't help but worry. I honestly can't stand the thought of His Majesty being unhappy so I thought that perhaps he could use some time away from the castle for a while. I even thought about inviting him home but...well, with the renovations going on it would be far too noisy for His Highness. Gwendal might be willing to allow us to visit his castle but-"

Stopping suddenly, Gunter put a protective hand in front of Geisila and stared intently down the hall when he saw a long shadow pass under the torchlight. Geisila must have seen it too, because she whispered in a low voice, "An intruder?"

"I'm not sure," Gunter replied in a hushed tone, reaching for his sword, "It could be, so let us proceed with caution."

"Right," Geisila nodded.

Treading carefully, the two of them followed the figure down the dimly lit hall before it vanished so quickly into the shadows that both of them jumped, startled by the abrupt disappearance. They definitely felt a presence there a moment ago, but it had dissipated into nothingness almost as suddenly as it appeared and the two of them were left stunned.

Had they really seen that shadowy form just now...?

Or, was it just a trick of the light...?

Either way, they both decided that it would be best to tell Murata and the others about it in the morning so that they could search the castle more thoroughly just in case. Because the last thing I needed was to worry about intruders when I was already having a hard enough time getting to sleep. Only, it was already too late...

The intruder was already there.

* * *

The next morning was when we received the first sign that something else-something unexplained-was starting to happen. For that morning, written all over the walls in bright red ink where the shadow had passed the night before, were the words-

"Stay awake..." Shori read in a shaken voice when he read the words aloud to Conrad and the others as they rushed to where they had heard him shout in alarm when he woke up that morning.

And why could he read them? Because the words were written in Japanese kanji. But the letters were very sloppy, as if the person who wrote them was half-asleep or perhaps struggling to retain a physical form in order to write them so that we could see the words. Or maybe, they had been written by a child...

"What can this mean?" Gwendal asked, turning to Shori who had turned deathly pale. "Did you write this?"

Shori shook his head slowly, "No. At least, I don't think so. But there are only three of us who could have written it. The Great Wiseman, myself or..." snapping his head up in alarm when the revelation struck him, Shori whirled around and cried out, "Yuri!"


End file.
